Soul to sole with Ben Kaminsky

Ben Kaminsky is a pharmaceutical chemist who has been developing medicines for physicians globally for almost 40 years, first through Montreal-based Odan Laboratories, which he founded in 1974, and now through B. Kamins, launched in 1997. B. Kamins, and its distinctive bio-maple compound, is now known as one of the leading skincare companies in the growing field of cosmeceuticals—skincare that bridges the gap between treatments found in a physician’s office and those products sold at traditional cosmetic counters.

What I love about this business is… that it’s constantly evolving. There are preparations that are coming out that have merit and there are many being touted that do not. It’s up to the consumers to educate themselves and learn which ones are appropriate to them. A dermatologist will take a history of your health, your age, your background, and try to figure out what the right treatment for you is. Sadly, when you go to a cosmetic counter, many sales are based on television and advertising… that’s no way of getting information.

The hardest thing I ever did was… convince my wife that proper skincare starts with looking after your whole body and that includes the way you nourish yourself, the way you exercise, the way you relax and the way you use skin preparations as you’re aging.

What’s next for the business? New ways of getting materials on top of the skin and in the skin… that’s where the skill and the ability of the formulator and the way it’s manufactured comes in.

How long do you plan to keep doing this? I’m an old guy but I’m still with it and I still love it! I’m still learning and there remains a lot to know and a lot to conquer as far as these preparations are concerned. We’re working with nanoparticles and truly innovating in terms of delivery of these topical preparations, which is absolutely interesting to me.